Rubber heel



May 19, 1964 E. o. KRAEPELIN RUBBER HEEL.

Filed Feb. 2, 1962 ll ll D F l G l FIG 2.

X Y S J 6 N I a T K FIG .5

I \nvgm'v'or' United States Patent "Ce 3,133,361 RUBEER HEEL Edward 0. Kraepeiin, Brownsville, Tex. (General Delivery, Long Beach, Calif.) Filed Feb. 2, 1962, Ser. No. 170,846 1 Claim. (Cl. 36- -35) This invention relates to a shoe and, more particularly, to a rubber heel construction therefor for giving the wearer a small lift as he starts to go into a stride, as well as a sense of buoyancy during brisk walking, also when standing still, also to give a quicker start from the standing to the'walking position and longer life to the heel.

Broadly stated, the present invention relates to a rubber heel construction wherein the forward, straight edge portion of the heel extends below the horizontal plane of the outer surface of the sole, whereas the curved, rear end of the heel extends in the same plane as the outer surface of the sole, and wherein the bottom surface of the heel is flat and extends downwardly and forwardly at an acute angle.

A disadvantage of conventional rubber heels is that they do not provide any of the above mentioned desirable features of the present invention.

An object of the present invention is to provide a novel heel construction providing buoyancy and an easier start when going into a stride, so as to enable the wearer to stand and walk with ease, as well as to walk long distances without tiring.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from a study of the following description taken with the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a. shoe having a rubber heel construction embodying the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the rubber heel shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of one form of rubber heel construction for providing a heel with a downwardly and forwardly tapered bottom surface; and,

FIG. 4 is a side View of a modification showing a solid rubber heel with a downwardly and forwardly tapered bottom surface.

Referring more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawing, numeral A denotes a shoe having a rubber heel B embodying a downwardly and forwardly tapered, flat bottom face or surface, according to the principles of the present invention. Line C indicates the plane of the bottom or outer face or surface of the sole which coincides with the ground surface, whereas line D represents a horizontal plane extending only through the front or forward edge of the heel. It will be noted, therefore, that the bottom face of the heel is tapered at a small acute angle in a downward and forward direction, so that when the wearer stands, he will rest his weight entirely on the forward edge of the heel, since the curved rear edge is spaced from the ground surface by the distance existing between planes C and D.

FIG. 3 shows one rubber heel construction for providing the downward and forward taper for the bottom face 3,l33,361 Patented May 19, 1964 of the heel E, extending between lines P and T. Such taper is provided by inserting a wedge shape piece of leather Y between a conventional rubber heel E and the shoe so as to lower the front or forward edge of the heel below the outer face of the sole by the distance between lines M and N. The rear edge of the wedge Y comes substantially to a point so as to separate the heel and shoe by only the very small distance that exists between lines S and V.

FIG. 4 shows a modification of the rubber heel X which is made in one piece with the top surface JG extending horizontally and coinciding with the bottom surface or face of the heel portion of the shoe, and with a bottom surface or face of the heel extending angularly downwardly and forwardly so that the front edge is separated from the top surface by the distance existing between lines I and K, which is greater than the distance existing between lines G and H at the rear edge portion of the heel. Nails F are used for fastening the heel E to the shoe. The construction shown in FIG. 4 is particularly suitable for making new shoes with heels embodying the present invention.

By virtue of the downwardly projecting forward edge of the rubber heel, the wearer is given a small lift as he starts to go into a stride, giving him a quicker start, also it gives him a sense of buoyancy as the speed of walking is increased, also giving him buoyancy even when standing still.

While I have illustrated and described several embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that these are by way of illustration only, and that various changes and modifications may be made within the contemplation of my invention and within the scope of the following claim.

I claim:

A shoe including a sole having a bottom face and a rubber heel, said heel having a forward edge, curved rear edge and bottom face portions, the bottom portion of said forward edge of the heel extending below the bottom face portion of the sole, the curved rear edge portion of the heel extending in the same plane as said bottom face portion of the sole, said bottom face portion of the heel being in a flat plane which is inclined downwardly and forwardly from said curved rear edge portion to said forward edge portion at an acute angle with respect to said first mentioned plane, so that the weight of the wearer of the shoe will be borne solely by the front edge of the heel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,439,564 Lucier Dec. 19, 1922 1,587,442 Teetsal June 1, 1926 1,602,203 Pietzuch Oct. 5, 1926 1,931,957 Gilowitz Oct. 24, 1933 2,025,647 Daly er al Dec. 24, 1935 2,235,256 Elliott Mar. 18, 1941 2,855,704 Schlesinger Oct. 14, 1958 ,959,873 Schlesinger Nov. 15, 1960 9,874 Schlesinger Nov. 15, 1960 34 Bernier Jan. 15, 1963 

